Hurricane Irma: Will Virginia call a state of emergency as Irma makes its way north up USA
AS Hurricane Irma continues to race towards the United States, fears are growing that the cyclone might reach Virginia. But will Virginia’s authorities declared a state of emergency?
Hurricane Irma Virginia state of emergency USA warning
Hurricane Irma: The storm will definitely impact the US
Hurricane Irma is forecast to pass by the Cuba and reach the east coast of Florida by Sunday morning.
The latest National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecast predicts that the cyclone could continue moving north over the Florida Peninsula towards Georgia.
It is still too early to predict just how far north Irma will travel, but some forecasters fear that the cyclone could edge into Tennessee as a tropical depression.
National Weather Service (NWS) forecaster Mike Rusnak is at the very least expecting Irma’s rainfall to reach the east coast state by late Monday.
He told Virginia News: “I would think some rain late Monday afternoon into Tuesday.”
“Just be prepared for any kind of change in the track over the next couple of days,” he added. “I would not panic at this time.”
At the moment the NWS office in Wakefield, VA, is not anticipating any hazardous weather from Friday through to Wednesday.
Tropical winds are expected to arrive over northeast Florida as early as Sunday evening, and carry on into southeast Georgia overnight Sunday.
“Dust off your hurricane plans and be prepared, just in case,” said Mike Duttek from the NWS office in Wakefield.
We've got everybody on alert and as soon as we get a better idea of the path, we will make decisions accordingly
The charts below show the potential path Irma might take into Virginia.
Will Virginia call a state of emergency?
It will take several more days for Virginia to feel the impact of Irma, but state authorities are keeping their fingers on the pulse.
Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe said: "We've got everybody on alert and as soon as we get a better idea of the path, we will make decisions accordingly.”
Hurricane Irma path: Potential path forecasts into Virginia
The Governor underlined that public safety is taking precedence, saying that it is “the most important thing we can do”.
However the Governor also reminded his people to monitor the weather and “stay prepared” for whatever may come.
“Be safe. Be smart,” he tweeted.
Right now Virginia’s government is committed to help its neighbours caught in Irma’s deadly path.
Hurricane Irma path: The hurricane is forecast to reach Florida buy Sunday morning
Mr McAuliffe is in contact with Florida Governor Rick Scott, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has committed several first responders from Virginian to send to Puerto Rico.
Earlier this month Governor McAuliffe declared a state of emergency in a bid to expedite aid to the Gulf Coast areas hit by Hurricane Harvey.
Follow Express.co.uk for the latest news and developments on Hurricane Irma.